Waterboard



Nov. 23 1926. D.L.RANLETT WATER- -BOARD Filed June 26, 192e 2 Sheets-Sheet l Nov. 23 1926.

D. L. RANLETT WATER 'BOARD Filed June 26. 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Nov. 23, 1926.

UNITED STATES 1,608,000 ENT OFFICE.

PAT

DAVID L. IRANLET'I, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR T0 THE BALSA XVOOD COMPANY,

Y INC., A CORPORATION 0F NEW YORK.

WATERBARD.

' appnmimii mea June 2s, 1926. serial No. 118,627.

The present invention relates to waterboards, such, forexample. as surf-boards, aquaplanes, and similar devices, and the same is an improvement over the structure sho'wn and described inmjY prior Patent No. 1,356,013, granted October 19, 1920. Y

In actual practice, balsa wood has, owing' to its extreme lightness as compared to other materials, been found highly desirable as a material for water-boards. Great diiculty has been experienced in the use of balsa wood for this purpose, however, for various reasons, among the most prominent of which are'the great diificulty'attendant in obtaining balsa wood of suflcient dimensions to construct water-boards of lone piece, and second certain characteristics of the balsa wood itself which render it incapable when used for this purpose to withstand the strains and stresses to which the finished product is subjected when in use, unless certain constructions which render the manufacture of water-boards from balsa wood very expensive, are resorted to.

It is one of the objects of the present invention to provide a new and improved construction of water-board, which construction permits of the use of balsa. wood in the manf ufacture of such articles without unduly adding to the cost thereof.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a new and improved water-board constructed of balsa wood which will be rigid, and will successfully withstand the stresses and strains to which it is subjected during ordinary use.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the following specification, and one of the practical embodiments of the invention together with certain modified features thereof is illustrated in the accompanying drawings forming a part of this application, and in which- Fig. l is a plan view of a surf-board constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an edge view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional View thereof, taken on the line 3-3`0f Fig. l;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of an aquaplane constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 5 is an edge view thereof; and Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional view. A surf-board, such as shown in Figures l to 3 of the drawings, when constructed in accordance withthe present invention, ini cludes a plurality of relatively narrow strips 10 of balsa wood which extend longitudinally of the surf-board, these strips being suitably secured together.

To provide rigidity in the finished product, suitable means for interlocking and securing said strips 10 together is employed and in the present illustration of the invention, this meansis shown as comprising dovetail joints 12, the several strips being also glued to one another.

The dovetail joints 12 between the several strips heretofore referred to are provided by forming each of the strips 10 upon opposite faces with longitudinal ribs or rojections 14 and correspondingly shape mortices 16 so constructed and arranged that when the several strips are placed together .u to form the surf-board, the ribs or projections will be received in the mortices in the manner shown in the drawings.'

Before the several strips are placed together to form the board, glue is applied to their several abutting faces and this, together with the dovetail joints, provides a rigid structure in the finished product.

After the board is formed, it is enclosed in a tightly stretched covering 18 of canvas ory other material capableof treatment to render it waterproof, the cover being so shaped and applied that its free edges overlie eachother as designated at 20 in Fig. 3, and said edges are secured to the board in U0 any desired manner, after which a sealing strip 22 is secured over the overlapped edges 4 20 as shown.

Suitable hand grips, such as 24, are provided, they being suitably secured to the side edges of the board adjacent the forward end thereof.

Figures 4 to 6 inclusive show the invention as applied to an aquaplane, and in said figures, the plane or board is formed of 10o relatively narrow strips 30 of balsa. wood which are glued together and rigidly retained in such relation by the dovetail joints 32, in a manner similar to that heretofore described.

In this form of the invention` however, reinforcing strips 34 are secured to the side edges of the board or plane, these reinforctit) . ing` strips being formed lfrom material having greater strength than the balsa wood of which the strips 30 are formed such, for example, as a hard Wood. These reinforcing strips 34 have dovetailed connection With their respective strips 30 and are glued thereto, preferably in the same manner as are the strips 30.

The board or plane thus formed is protected from the Water by a tightly stretched covering 36 of canvas or other material which has been treated to render it Waterproof, and a sealing strip 38 for the free edges thereof is employed in the same manner as heretofore described.

The reference numral 40 designates a towing strap, and 42 designates a manipulating rope, and this towing strap and manipulating rope are preferably formed of a single length of rope as shown.

To provide for attachment of the towing strap 40 and the manipulating rope 42, each of the reinforcing strips 34 is provided with spaced openings 44 through which the single length of rope forming these members is threaded, and to prevent ingress of water at these points, metallic tubes 46 having their ends upset as at 48 may be provided.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that the present invention provides a new and improved surf-board, aquaplane or other waterboard so constructed from balsa wood as to possess suflicient strength and rigidity to withstand the stresses and strains to which yit is subjected when in use and, at the same time, possess all of the advantages attendant the use of balsa wood in the manufacture of such devices.

While the invention has been shown and described in its preferred form, it is to be understood that it is not limited to the particular embodiment thereof herein illustrated, and that itmay be embodied in other forms which fall Within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is:

1. A water-board comprising an elongated body made up of several strips of balsa Wood running substantially longitudinally of said body, the majority of said strips being transversely wider than thick and the joining edges thereof running transverse of the width of said board, said strips being glued together along their abutting edges and provided with additional fastening means extending from the edge vof each strip into the edges of the adjacent ones, and constructed-and arranged to hold them tightly together against strains, said body portion being enclosed within a closely tting fabric covering which is stretched transversely of said board and suitably waterproofed. v

2. A water-board comprising a body portion formed of a plurality of longitudinally extending strips of balsa wood glued together. each of said strips having on opposed faces longitudinally extending ribs or projections, and correspondingly shaped mortices, whereby to provide for rigid interlocking of said strips when the longitudinally extending ribs of one strip are received in the mortices ofan adjacent strip, a waterproof covering for said body portion tightly stretched thereoyer, said waterproof covering having overlapped free edges secured to said body portion, and a second strip secured to said body portion and enclosing said overlapped free edges of the waterproofed covering.

`Signed at New York, New York, this 24th day of June, 1926.

DAVID L. RANLETT.

transverse separating 

